Send Page Upgrade

In Q4 of 2017, the classic Send and Authoring pages will be retired, and no longer available in the Adobe Sign system.

Anticipating this change to the system, the integrations that rely on embedding the Send and Authoring pages need to be changed over to the new experience. These integrations range from standard Adobe Sign packages like Adobe Sign for MS Dynamics, to home grown API solutions custom crafted for specialized use.

Changing the embedded page will do more than simply change the look and feel of the Send and Authoring process. It will open several new features for users, as well as removing older technologies that have been replaced by more robust solutions.

This switch to establish the new Send/Authoring experience as the standard is scheduled for the Q2 2017 release, and new accounts will no longer have an option to view the classic pages. In Q4 2017 it is anticipated that all customers will be on the new experience, and the classic pages will be fully retired.

The Send Page

The Send page is central to the Adobe Sign service, and upgrading to the new experience brings significant changes in terms of functionality, as well as some potential process changes.

With only one exception, users are able to accomplish everything they could in the classic view. However, there are additional options available, that may or may not be enabled by the Account Admin.

The notable exception is that the Written Signature workflow (replacing the classic Fax workflow) will not allow a Sender to send directly to a phone number.

Look and Feel

For Senders, the overall look and feel of the new page will be the most striking change. Though all of the classic features are present on the new page, just having a new visual field to scan will cause users to slow down and be more critical of their process.

However, the general page layout is the same, reducing the impact of the “newness”, and users find that the practice of sending an agreement is mechanically the same (notwithstanding the new features that are exposed), and habituate quickly.

Below are the two experiences side by side. And though the images are too small to see the details, you can see that the framework is essentially the same.

To examine the fine differences, the pages are broken into the four functional sections:

The Recipients

The Message

The Files

The Options

What's Changing in the Recipient section

The topmost section of the Send page defines the signature cycle, or the list of recipients, and how they may interact with the agreement. Below you can see the classic page on top, and the new page on the bottom.

The Default Workflow Switch

The default workflow switch determines if the basic signature flow is Sequential (Complete in Order) or Parallel (Complete in Any Order).

The option has been moved to the top of the Recipient list, the text that identifies the options has been clarified, and the graphical “switch” provides a less subjective understanding as to which option is selected.

Functionally, the setting has not changed.

Note:

You will notice that the signer index is exposed to the left of the signers Role when the signature flow is sequential.

When the signature flow is changed to parallel, the signer index is removed as all signers are granted access to the document at the same time.

I need to sign

The “I need to sign” option allows the Sender to add themselves as a Recipient to the agreement in either the first or last signer position.

The option has been renamed to “Add Me”, and moved from under the list of Recipients to the top-right side of the Recipient stack.

Functionally, the Add Me link will insert the Sender into the Recipient stack in any position, not just as the first or last signer.

Added features in the Recipient Section

Additional Recipient Role - Delegator

The new Send page supports an additional Recipient role: Delegator.

The Delegator role allows a Sender to create Agreements when the ultimate Signer or Approver isn’t known up front. A delegator is designated, and that delegator will ultimately relay the Agreement to the final Recipient.

Per Recipient Private Messages

Senders can create unique messages for each Recipient in the signing process before sending documents for signature or approval. If private messages are enabled, senders can click the Add a private message button.

In the Private message dialog, the Recipient-specific private message can be entered.

The private message is included along with the global message in the "Please Sign" email to the Recipient.

Optionally, you can have the private message exposed within the signing experience.

Recipient Groups

A recipient group allows multiple team members to have the authority to sign or approve on behalf of the entire group. Add a “recipient group” as a single signing step, then add multiple recipients to that group.

Any one of the recipients listed can participate on behalf of the entire group and ensure your transactions aren’t being held up waiting for just one person. Recipient groups can be defined as signers or approvers, and authentication methods can be individually designated for each member of the group as needed.

The Recipient group capability is automatically enabled for enterprise level accounts.

Hybrid Workflows

Hybrid workflows allow for a sequential workflow to include one or more signature steps of parallel signers.

In the below image, you will see that the #2 signature step includes three Recipients.

These three Recipients will all be notified at the same time after the first Recipient has completed their signature, and all three must apply their signature before the process can move to the third signature step.

Added features in the Options Section

Set Reminder

Reminders have been moved from the post-send page and added to the Options section, allowing Senders to configure the full Agreement on the Send page.

Recipients' Language

The Recipients’ Language field is not a new feature, but is newly placed in the Options section.

This is the same feature that was moved from the Message section of the classic page layout.

The Authoring Environment

The Authoring environment is the core of the user generated document library. The new environment provides template creators an improved layout for applying and managing fields, as well as accessing the tools useful for producing a well-polished final document.

Look and Feel

The changes to the Authoring environment are primarily structural, with tools being moved to have better exposure and easier access.

It’s worth noting that the Authoring environment has two interfaces in both the Classic and New versions:

The “ad-hoc” interface

Launched from

The Send page when the Preview, position signatures or add form fields box is checked

The Manage page by clicking the edit link for Agreements in a Draft status

Participants are explicitly identified by their email addresses (imported from the Send page)

Template properties are fixed and cannot be adjusted

The interface for creating templates

Launched from:

The Dashboard page by clicking the Add Template to Library link

The Manage page by clicking the edit link for a library template

Participants are defined as “Participant 1” through “Participant N”

Template properties are exposed – Name of the template and the distribution of the template can be edited

Below you can see the two environments side by side with the classic layout on the left:

Page Layout Changes

Fields have moved to the right rail

The fields section holds all of the discrete fields you can author onto the document. Most have a special purpose, like Signature, Signer Name and Hyperlink. The generic fields are in the Data Fields section and include the Text box.

The fields section has been moved from the top of the screen, to give more workable space on the form, and placed on the right rail.

Nothing has changed functionally for the fields.

Field Size/Alignment/Navigation tools exposed

There are three field tools aligned across the top of the page:

Snap to Align - four options exist to align on any side of the guide field

Snap to Size - three tools exist to snap to width, height or both of the guide field

Navigate to field – lists all fields alphabetically by field name, and will move cursor focus to any field you select

These fields have been permanently exposed vs having been a pop-down section that was hidden under a button.

Functionally, these tools have not changed

Field Template access is improved

Field Template access allows the Sender to apply a form field overlay for any uploaded document.

The feature now triggers a pop-under field to select the template, then then disappears instead of placing an overlay over the fields section.

Functionally, the template selector is unchanged.

Zoom feature moved

The Zoom Feature allows you to scale up or down the document within the Adobe Sign window.

The feature has been changed from the Plus – Minus scale at the top of the window to the Plus – Minus icons at the bottom of the page.

Functionally the feature remains the same.

Page Selector moved

Page selection allows the user to select any page and have that page brought to the viewable space.

This feature has been changed from presenting tiny thumbnails on the left had side of the screen to a more discrete control at the bottom of the page where the sender can either page up/down using the arrows, or enter a page number and skip directly to that page.

Send / Reset moved

The Reset Fields link will clear the form of any fields added during the current Authoring session. Fields that were part of the document prior to opening the template in Authoring will remain, or be added back if they were deleted.

The Send button finalizes the Authoring process and sends the Agreement to the first recipient.

Both of these objects have moved from the top-right of the page to the bottom-right.

Functionally, they both operate the same.

Improved field level error detection

When a new document with text tags or Acrobat fields is uploaded, Adobe Sign will perform a verification of all field properties to ensure that no errors (invalid font size, circular calculated expressions, etc.) exist. When errors are found, a banner will be presented indicating the number of errors, and navigational icons so you can easily move between field errors.

Below is an example of a form field with a validation rule looking for a social security number, but the default value provided was text.

By clicking the Next Error button on the right, the next erroring field is opened with the validation error explicitly stated at the top of the field.

Changes in the Create Template interface

Template Properties moved

Template properties allow you to change the template name, determine what type of template you are saving (Document or Form Fields), and how the document is distributed (personal use, group use or account wide use).

The link to access the template properties has been moved from the top of the page, and placed to be more conspicuous on the right rail, just above the form fields.

Functionally, the group of settings within the Template Properties are the same.

"Participant" list renamed to "Recipient" and moved

The Recipients drop down enumerates the various participants to the Agreement. In the Create Template interface, recipients are identified as “Participant 1” through “Participant N”.

In the ad-hoc interface, the agreement recipients are already defined, and the email address values for each recipient is inserted instead of the “Participant” placeholders.

In both cases, the participant list provides the vehicle for viewing which fields are assigned to which recipient. By selecting any one participant from the list, the fields assigned to that party will remain bright on the page, while all others are grayed out.

Additionally, the participant list can be used during field placement to define the party the field should be assigned to. By selecting Participant 2, and then placing any number of fields, those fields will automatically be assigned to participant 2.

In the classic environment, the field was titled “Select Participants” and has been renamed to “Recipients”.

The drop-down field has been moved from the upper-left of the window to the right rail, just above the form fields.

Functionally, the participant list has not changed.

Changes in the "ad-hoc" interface

Save template to document library

Senders now have the option of creating a template while in the Send process, and then save that template to the Library. Either type of template can be saved, and the template is fully editable from the Manage tab.

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